Carpe Diem

So what is life but a big Catch 22? You think that you have a handle on what's happening and then there are those high expectations which somehow never get met. I went to hear some jazz tonight but it just didn't swing and "it don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing." It was as if the band was playing in slow motion. I kept hoping that at some point the music would be jumping and jiving but it never happened. "So sad," I lamented to myself," but not totally unexpected." Have you ever had an encounter with music that just didn't fit your pictures? Well, tonight was that way for me. Here was this old jazz dude, tenor in hand, who obviously at some point in his life had been on top of his game musically but now had somehow lost the ability to express himself through his sax. He went through the motions but whatever he played, even with charts and a piano; bass, drums trio to back him up the music came out dull and lifeless. He broke out with an old soprano; you know the kind that's hard to keep in tune and looks just like a tenor or alto and, in that moment, I got really excited because I thought he was going to play some hot cookin' sounds but alas it never happened. In the end, I gave up and left the club to those who were willing to accept the mediocre performance of a once great musical personality.

And so the age old question for me is does the artist, albeit writer, musician, sculptor, actor, standup comic or any of a variety of other artistic sorts maintain his creativity? How much depends on the feedback of the audience? Does the venue make a difference? Does the artist sell out to the commercialism of his genre or hold on to the essence of his art form? When the creative process is flowing, does he reach into the soul and go for the gold or succumb to the almighty dollar?

As an active participant in the world of receptive and creative forces, I have always been bothered by this dilemma! Fortunately, I no longer have to work a job which consumes my time and creative outflow. Now, being retired, I can spend my energies on writing and other creative projects. In essence, I now may spread my wings and fly. Like the baby bird, I may fall a few times before I really soar but at least I now have the opportunity to pursue my passion without being constricted by outside pressures.

Baby boomers, this is the best time in your life. Use it to fly like a bird! You're free to explore all those avenues that you've put on hold while you were raising a family, working a job and succumbing to all the outside pressures that society inflicted upon you. Do you have an unfulfilled dream from your youth? Are there experiences that you always wanted to have but somehow never got around to fulfilling? The time is now; seize the day!

Learn more about this author, Rebecca Ashby.
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